


teach them how to say goodbye

by A_Confused_Kitten



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist (Anime 2003)
Genre: Alive Greed (Fullmetal Alchemist), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Edward Elric Swears, Feels, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, POV Second Person, almost major character death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-01-30
Packaged: 2021-02-27 08:33:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,215
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22484194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/A_Confused_Kitten/pseuds/A_Confused_Kitten
Summary: You still don’t know why you’re doing this. Why you’re helping a man that knocked you out to kidnap Alphonse and hurt your teacher. Maybe it’s just because you won’t let yourself become another killer for the military, like the people who shot everyone in the Devil’s Nest because Greed and his crew weren’t human.Or maybe you just don’t want to see Al’s face when he realizes you killed someone.
Relationships: Edward Elric & Greed
Comments: 6
Kudos: 29





	teach them how to say goodbye

When you arrive, tired and out of breath, the homunculus is here. He’s alone, standing hunched over in front of the window, looking just as tired as you feel.

“Greed!” You shout, your chest heaving as you stand there, just trying to breathe. “Where is my brother!”

And then you notice Dante’s body, and your first thought is to yell. To scream at the homunculus because who else could have done it? “What the _hell_ happened here, Greed?” You ask, your voice bouncing off the walls. “Did you kill her?”

Greed’s laugh fills the room, dark and careless. “You can blame me for it, I don’t care.

But there’s not an ounce of blood staining his dark clothes, and no one could cause that sort of carnage without being covered in the crimson liquid.

“Did you kill her?” You repeat, more forcefully. Dante was just a helpless old woman and you can’t imagine having a reason to kill her, but someone did. A part of you wonders how a simple errand for teacher turned out so terribly, with the possibility of him fighting a homunculus while Dante’s still form bared witness.

“No.” Greed answers, shaking his head, without any of the flair you had come to associate with him. “No, I didn’t kill Dante.”

You step forward, only stopping when you notice the circle under your feet, and the crimson stained ground. “A transmutation circle,” you breathe, letting your gaze wander across its complexities. You force yourself to raise your head, trying to look Greed in the eye. “What does it do?”

The look Greed gives you is filled with something you can’t recognize. “That’s not information I can tell you, kid, not unless I want the other homunculi to try and seal me back up. And I have Martel to look after, so I’m not going to let that happen.”

“Tell me,” you demand, because maybe this will give Al his body back, and that was what mattered most. You transmute your arm into your signature blade, preparing to fight.

“ _No._ ” Greed says, and you rush forward.

The homunculus kicks your ass until you realize something. His body is human, and his shield probably is carbon. Stretch the atoms apart and his shield will crack.

You test your theory and are proven right, as a strike reverts his forearm to muscle and bone. You do it again, thinning the atoms on his stomach and repeating, except this time your blade cuts right through.

He stumbles back, and your eyes widen. No alchemic sparks dance around his skin, and blood seeps from the wound. “You’re not-”

Greed tries to laugh, only to slump forward, coughing up blood. “This is what the circle does, Edward Elric. It saps us of our philosopher’s stones, until our life force is gone entirely.”

“No, you can’t die!” You shout, lunging forward and putting all your weight on Greed’s wound. “You still haven’t told me where Al is!” You clap, and your red coat dissolves into bandages. You can make yourself a new one later, and this is far more important. “Just hold on for a damn minute.”

Greed sputters out a laugh, and more crimson drips down his chin. “Your brother is in the forest, with Martel.” He says, catlike eyes slipping towards the glass windows. “You should go to him.”

You ignore him, because you _won’t_ be the cause of his death. “You got trapped in the circle didn’t you?” You ask, as though it was even a question. “How much of your philosopher’s stone do you have left?”

“Not a lot.” Greed says, then seems to reconsider it. “Probably less than that.”

 _Shit_ , you swear to yourself, _that wasn’t good_. “Why aren’t you healing then?” You ask him.

You move so you're practically holding up him upright to wrap the bandages around his chest, It’s an awkward position, given that Greed is undeniably taller than you, and not really helping to support his own weight, but since he’s bleeding out, this’ll have to do.

“Can’t have the others knowin’ I’m still alive.” The homunculus mumbles, and shit, you’re running out of time. Part of you curses yourself for not bothering to learn even basic medical alchemy, but that’s something for you to worry about later. “Then they’re just goin’ to send people after Mar, and I can’t have that.”

“Just shut up already and stop wasting your breath!” You finally snap, and surprisingly, Greed listens. 

You still don’t know why you’re doing this. Why you’re helping a man that knocked you out to kidnap Alphonse and hurt your teacher. Maybe it’s just because you won’t let yourself become another killer for the military, like the people who shot everyone in the Devil’s Nest because Greed and his crew weren’t human.

~~Or maybe you just don’t want to see Al’s face when he realizes you killed someone.~~

The silence only lasts a few minutes, and then Greed is talking, stumbling through words in his hurry to speak. “Homunculi are the creation of alchemists trying to create life.” He says, his strange eyes meeting yours, blood slick fingers barely gripping your wrist. “Human bones, that’s our weakness.”

That stops you for a moment, as you pry your wrist out of his grasp. “What?” You can’t help but say, as you use the last of the bandages and go back to putting pressure.

“That’s our weakness,” Greed repeats, “the bones of the people alchemist tried to bring back to life.”

You force yourself not to freeze as you take in the information, deciding to process it later. “Why are you telling me this?”

Greed gives him a small smile and somehow it’s more genuine than anything he’d seen the homunculus do. “Because someone has to get rid of them, Ed. They sealed me away for 140 years because I disagreed with them, they can’t stay in control anymore. They'll burn this country to the ground if you don't do something about them.”

You stay silent, because what do you say to that? How do you respond to someone saying they were locked away and isolated for over a century because they wanted something different? “Shut up, you idiot.” You settle on saying, standing up, pulling Greed to his feet as you do so.

~~And you don’t even remember how you got to the floor.~~

“Promise me, kid, promise you’ll destroy the other homunculi.”

Greed’s eyes seem faded and there’s a resigned smile on his face, and you know you can’t say no. “Fine, idiot, I promise, but you’re not dying. Not on my watch.”

You wonder how you got here, half dragging a homunculus through an old house, after being enemies only hours ago. How you went from yelling to fighting to healing ~~and if~~ and when Greed survives, maybe even helping each other. Whenever you and Al try to do everyday things, something strange always seems to happen, but you think this might be the strangest of all.

“Hopefully,” you say, as you finally leave step into the forest, “Al hasn’t planned his lecture yet, since we need to explain that we’re not fighting, and I’m sure as hell having that conversation by myself, you asshole.”

Greed barks out a ragged laugh. “Only if Martel doesn’t kill me first.

**Author's Note:**

> Heyo! It's been a while since I've had the time to do any fma fics, and I wanted to experiment and try my hand at a second person p.o.v., so I thought I would combine the two! Hope you guys liked it.
> 
> ~ Cheshire


End file.
